The present invention relates to a lock mechanism, and a latch device, which has a moving member that is capable of approaching and moving away from a main body, and holds said moving member to be immovable in the locked position and enables movement in the unlocked state.
In vehicle compartment internal accessories such as cup holders and ashtrays, and audio devices., and the like, some have latch devices in order to close an opening-and-closing lid. For example, in Japanese Patent No. 3126992, a pair of circulating cam grooves having mutually different shapes is formed on both sides of a latch body 16. Also, the base part of a trace member is fixed on a housing, and a pair of trace parts formed on a trace part of the trace member is made capable of tracing respectively following the pair of circulating cam grooves.
These trace parts are pushed by the groove wall surface of the circulating cam groove in each pushing-in operation of the latch body, but because the shapes of the circulating cam grooves differ between the front side and the back side of the latch body, twisting is caused in the trace member. The trace parts are made to circulate in a fixed direction by the recoil force of the trace member against this twisting force.
Also, the latch body becomes in a state being locked to the housing in a state in which the trace parts are coupled respectively in recessed parts formed respectively on the circulating cam grooves. By this, the lock strength can be made higher compared with the case of one trace part.
However, in Japanese Patent No. 3126992, because the trace parts are made to circulate by twisting force on the trace member, the durability of the trace member is not good.
The present invention, in consideration of the above circumstances, aims to provide a lock mechanism, and a latch device, in which the trace member can be made to circulate following the circulating cam groove without utilizing twisting force on the trace member.
Further objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the-following description of the invention.